Post-Game
Cerulean Cave, Mewtwo, the legendary birds and the 13 Pokemon you can never catch on a Yellow cartridge.
Cerulean Cave and Mewtwo
The hardest catch in Generation I
Cerulean Cave opens only after you become Champion. Surf north-west out of Cerulean City to reach it.
It holds the highest-level wild Pokemon in the game - Lickitung (a Yellow change; it was trade-only in Red and Blue), Rhyhorn, Chansey and Ditto among them - and at the deepest point, Mewtwo at level 70.
Use the Master Ball if you still have it. If you spent it, put Mewtwo to sleep, chip it down to a sliver and throw Ultra Balls. Save before you enter the room.
The Legendary Birds
One each, all level 50
- Articuno - Seafoam Islands B4F. You need Surf and Strength, and you must drop the boulders into the holes to calm the current.
- Zapdos - the Power Plant, reached by Surfing from Route 10.
- Moltres - inside Victory Road, on the way to the League.
There is exactly one of each. Save before you engage.
The 13 Pokemon You Cannot Get in Yellow
Link cable required
These thirteen cannot be obtained on a Yellow cartridge by any normal means. The only route is a link-cable trade with Red or Blue.
| # | Pokemon | Why it is missing | Easiest source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 013 | Weedle | Removed from Viridian Forest - only Caterpie remains | Red/Blue Viridian Forest |
| 014 | Kakuna | Line removed | Red/Blue |
| 015 | Beedrill | Line removed | Red/Blue |
| 023 | Ekans | Removed - it is Jessie's Pokemon | Red version |
| 024 | Arbok | Removed | Red version |
| 026 | Raichu | No wild Pikachu, and the starter Pikachu refuses the Thunder Stone | Trade a Pikachu in and evolve it, or trade a Raichu |
| 052 | Meowth | Removed - it is Team Rocket's Meowth | Blue version |
| 053 | Persian | Removed | Blue version |
| 109 | Koffing | Removed - it is James's Pokemon | Red/Blue |
| 110 | Weezing | Removed | Red/Blue |
| 124 | Jynx | Its Red/Blue in-game trade does not exist in Yellow | Red/Blue (Cerulean trade: Poliwhirl) |
| 125 | Electabuzz | Not wild in Yellow | Red version (Power Plant) |
| 126 | Magmar | Not wild in Yellow | Blue version (Pokemon Mansion) |
Alakazam, Golem and Gengar evolve only when link-traded (any Gen 1 cartridge, including another Yellow). Machamp is the exception: the NPC trade in the Underground Path house gives you a Machoke for a Cubone, and because that counts as a trade it evolves the moment you receive it.
Mew was never obtainable on any Generation I cartridge in normal play - event distributions only. The "Mew glitch" is a bug, not gameplay.
Yellow gives back what Red and Blue made hard: all three Kanto starters as gifts, wild Farfetch'd on Routes 12 and 13, wild Lickitung in Cerulean Cave, and both the Oddish and Bellsprout lines in one game.
In-Game Trades
Seven trades, no link cable needed
| Location | You give | You receive |
|---|---|---|
| Route 2 house | Clefairy | Mr. Mime |
| Underground Path house (Routes 5-6) | Cubone | Machoke - evolves into Machamp on arrival |
| Route 11 gate (upstairs) | Lickitung | Dugtrio |
| Route 18 gate (upstairs) | Tangela | Parasect |
| Cinnabar Lab | Golduck | Rhydon |
| Cinnabar Lab | Growlithe | Dewgong |
| Cinnabar Lab | Kangaskhan | Muk |